The SAGE Handbook of Drug & Alcohol Studies
Social Science Approaches
- Torsten Kolind - Aarhus University, Denmark
- Betsy Thom - Middlesex University, UK
- Geoffrey Hunt - Institute for Scientific Analysis, USA
With contributions from leading international academics across the social sciences, this accessible handbook takes a critical look at the key theories, disciplinary approaches, contemporary issues and debates in the field.
· Part I Central Social Science Theories Drug and Alcohol Studies
· Part II Pillars in Social Science Drug and Alcohol Studies
· Part III Controversies and New Approaches in Social Science Drug and Alcohol Studies
This Handbook is an excellent reference text for the growing number of academics, students, scientists and practitioners in the drug and alcohol studies community.
Social science approaches to drug and alcohol use offer the key to understanding complex social phemomena. The editor and authors of this volume are to be congratulated in providing an accessible and wide ranging introduction to the key theories; disciplinary approaches; topics and themes which characterise this area. For a thorough going introduction to drugs, alcohol and social science, this book will be the first port of call.
This handbook provides exceptional coverage, both broad and deep, of the shifting terrain of drug and alcohol studies. Top experts from across the social sciences and from a wide range of cultures insightfully distill the latest literature in crisp, clear prose. From history and theory to emerging approaches to public policy, their chapters show how the use and abuse of drugs intersect with class, race, gender,poverty, and the broader matrix of social problems and public policy in which drugs are embedded. An immensely useful resource.
This handbook encompasses the complex interdisciplinary field of social drug and alcohol studies from diverse approaches and angles: in terms of the approaches of different research disciplines and traditions, of different strategies of societal response, and of a range of controversies and new approaches. For those new to the field, it is a brilliant guide to different ways of framing and thinking about drug and alcohol issues, and where knowledge stands on each of them. For those already in the field, its up-to-date overviews and commentaries will be informative, intriguing and challenging. I found much in it that was a gripping and thought-provoking read.
